David Cameron has welcomed Larry the cat to Downing Street, saying he will make a “great addition” to the No. 10 team.
The tabby was recruited from Battersea Dogs and Cats Home as a deterrent after a series of sightings of rats outside the Prime Minister’s official residence.
Larry’s food is expected to be paid for by a whip-round among No 10 staff, rather than funded from the public purse. (PA)
Biker caught
A motorcyclist riding without a registration plate gave a speed camera the finger as he tore through a 30mph zone because he thought he would not be caught.
Paul Collins, 26, of Hillson Drive, Fareham, Hampshire, was riding his JinLun Lexmoto 125cc bike, which had no front plate, at 48mph in a 30mph zone in Southampton when he made the gesture.
But his actions gave police a clear view of him and his motorcycle and he received five points on his licence and was fined a total of £177 after pleading guilty at court.
Teenage councillor
A sixth-former thought to be the youngest elected politician in Britain has been sworn into office with a warning about his use of internet social networking sites.
Independent Tom Bletsoe, 18, of St Ives, Cambridgeshire, was told any inappropriate comments on Facebook and Twitter might breach St Ives Town Council’s conduct code.
Council clerk Alison Melnyczuk issued the warning as Mr Bletsoe – who was 18 years and 52 days when he won a by-election earlier this month – officially joined St Ives council by signing a register and collecting an official tie and badge.
Passion killers
Islamic morality police in Malaysia arrested 40 unmarried Muslim couples in hotel rooms during Operation Valentine, aimed at curbing illegal premarital sex.
Scores of officers raided budget hotels, detaining unmarried Muslim couples who were sharing rooms.
Police said they would be charged with “khalwat,” or “close proximity,” which is described under Shariah law as when unmarried couples are alone together in a private place.
Hippy shakes
A Barcelona theatre staging an adaptation of the hippy-era musical Hair has received a warning because actors in it smoke on stage.
A new Spanish law bans smoking tobacco in all enclosed public places. The city’s health department said it was responding to a complaint by an audience member. (PA)
Missing in action
Japan’s prime minister has vowed to find the remains of the more than 10,000 soldiers still missing from the battle of Iwo Jima, one of the bloodiest campaigns of the Second World War.
Naoto Kan, who has made the search a government priority, was at a ceremony to bury 822 remains recovered last year – the largest annual figure in 40 years.
The number has increased dramatically because of the discovery of two grave sites on the tiny island, now known as Ioto, which was what it was called by residents before the war.
Chilling home video
Chilling footage showing 7/7 fanatic Mohammed Siddique Khan bidding farewell to his baby daughter was released for the first time yesterday.
Cradling the little girl in his arms and kissing her repeatedly, the suicide bomber appears the picture of a doting father.
But as he talks to the youngster, bouncing her gently on his knees, his words depart from traditional parental concern.
“Learn to fight, fighting’s good,” he tells the child. The home video, apparently filmed by Khan’s wife Hasina Patel on November 15 2004, shows the 30-year-old sitting on a chair with his daughter perched on his knees. A television is on in the background. Though Khan’s voice is at times unclear, he can be heard saying, “remember me” as a female voice adds: “Not long to go now”.
The footage was released during the inquest into the atrocity at London’s Royal Courts of Justice which has now turned to examine the backgrounds of the four bombers. (PA)